Apparatus for disentangling cut tobacco.



PATENTED APR. 2a, 1903.

0. W. ALLISON, DEGD. q. A. WOLOOTT, sxnouwmx. APPARATUS FORDISENTANGLING OUT TOBAGGO.

APPLICATION IILBD JUNE 23, 1902.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

N0 MODEL.

,Fxecz/ Zr-z'x car Wwaz'ovn, 026060 602 Attorney No. 726,607. PATENTEDAPR. 28, 1903..

' 0. W. ALLISON, DEGD.

0. A. W-OLOOTT; EXEUUTRIX.

APPARATUS FOR DISENTANGLING GUT TOBACCO.

APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 23. 1902.

' 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

N0 MODEL.

Attorney m: NnnRls PETERS co. mow-uma, WASHINGTON, u c

UNITED STATES I PATENT EEIoE.

CAROLINE ALLISON WOLCOTT, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, EXECUTRIX A OF OSCARW. ALLISON, DECEASED.

APPARATUS FOR DISENTANGLING CUT TOBACCO.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 726,607, dated April28, 1903.

Application filed June 23, 1902.

' T at whom it may concern.-

Be it known that OSCAR WJALLISON', de-

ceased, late a citizen of the United States, residing at Rochester, inthe county of Monroe and State of New York, di'd'invent certain new anduseful Improvements in Apparatus for Disentangling Cut Tobacco, of whichthe following is a specification.

The present invention relates to an appameans of which the cardingandcombing op eration and the necessary heating and drying may be performedmore expeditiouslyand during a single passage through acomparativelysmall machine. In the prior patent referred to the fibers of the tobaccowere separated or loosened in a drum and were afterward combed out ordisentangled by cylinders having intermeshing teeth or projec tions andafter being subjected to the action of these was dried in a second drumand again disentangled; but owing to the second tumbling or turningaction to which it was subjected in order to further dry it the tobaccowas liable to become entangled again, and reliance was placed upon thesecond combing operation to straighten out the fibers which had beendried more or less. In the present apparatus the operation of drying anddisentangling the fibers is continuous and the tobacco isboth dried andcombed or carded by the employment of a series of heated cylindershaving teeth or projections preferably operating atgreater surfacespeeds progressively from the point where the tobacco first enters themachine, so that the tobacco will be prevented from winding or becomingcaked' upon one cylinder and will be properly operated uponcontinuously, all or nearly all of the fibers being subjected to theaction of the heated pins while passing through the machine.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is Serial t... 112,946. onmodel.)

a longitudinal vertical sectional view of the improved machine, taken onthe line a a of Fig. 4. Fig. 2 is a view ofone side of the machine. Fig.3 is a view of the opposite side. Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional Viewtaken on the line b b of Fig. 1. 1

. Similar reference characters in the several figures indicatesimilarparts.

- The main frame of the machineconsists generally of two side plates orframes A A, connected by tie rods orbolts b b so as to leave a spacebetween them, said plates beingsecured at their lowerends toa suitablebase substantially the same size and the main Y drum or cylinder 13being larger. Each of the cylinders is provided with a series ofprojecting fingers 14, formed integral therewith or secured rigidlythereto, those on the feeding-cylinders 10 and 11 arranged to extendpast each other, sufficient space being permitted between them for theclearance of the fingers. The fingers or pins on the cylinder 12 passbetween those on the cylinder 11, and those on the cylinder 13 pass theones on all the other cylinders without interference. J ournaled in theupper portions of the side frame is an operating shaft having betweenthe side frames a long apron roller or pulley 15, around which passes afeeding or conveying apron or belt 16, extending over an idler pulley orroller 17 on a suitable support, and at one end of. the shaft 15 isprovided a belt-pulley 18, from which a .belt 19 extends to a pulley 20on the shaft of one of the apron-pulleys C at the lower portion of themachine. At the opposite end of the shaft 15 is arranged a gear 21,meshing with an idler-pinion 22, journaled on a stud on one of the sideframes and which in turn meshes with the gear 23 on one end of thecylinder 10. At the opposite end of said cyl inder is provided a gear24, meshing with a gear 25 on one end of the cylinder 11. (See dottedlines, Fig. 2.) On the same end of the cylinder 11 is secured a gear 26,meshing with a gear 27, secured to the cylinder 13, and at the oppositeend of the cylinder 13 is a gear 28, meshing with a gear 29, connectedto the cylinder 12. These gears for the cylinders are preferablyarranged near the outer sides of the frame-plates A, being secured tothe ends of the cylinders by screw-threads, as shown in Fig. 4, orotherwise. All of the cylinders are hollow and have at their endsapertures through which pass the'inner ends of fluid-pipes 30, saidpipes being connected to steam chests or manifolds 31, arranged at theopposite sides of the frame, a steam-tight joint being formed byconstructing packingglands 32 in the ends of the cylinders containingsuitable packing and through which the stationary steam-pipes 30 extend,so as to permit the passage of fluid through all of the cylinders,keeping the latter at a high temperature if steam is employed andserving also to heat the picking or separating pins 14.

The tobacco fibers are in a moist and more or less entangled conditionand as they come from the cutting-machine are deposited on theconveying-apron 16 and are carried along by said apron and are depositedbetween the feeding-cylinders 10 and 11, which revolve toward eachother, but at different speeds, by reason of the different sizes of thegears 2st and 25, the cylinder 11 moving the more rapidly and serving tostraighten or comb out to some extent the fibers. 13 is revolved by thegearing so as to have a surface speed slightly less than that of thecylinder 11, and the doffing or separating cylinder 12 is revolved at agreater surface speed than any of the others and serves to remove thefibers from the teeth of the main cylinder 13 and to prevent them beingcarried around on the cylinder 11 and cause them to be deposited on theconveying-belt D, which carries them out of the machine to a suitablepoint of deposit. The picking or separating fingers, and the surface ofthe drums or cylinders as well, being very hot when used for drying thefibers of the tobacco and the differential movement of the fingers beingprogressively faster toward the discharge end of the machine, thetobacco is found to be combed out, the masses or lumps disentangled, andit is left comparatively dry when removed from the discharge belt orapron and in a condition for further drying, if desired, and packaging.

The same machine or apparatus may be used for cooling tobacco or otherfibers, if desired, by causing a fluid, such as water or cold air, toflow through the cylinders, and this operation may, if desired, followthe drying and straightening operation, so that by The main cylinder Ythe employment of two machines the tobacco may be given the necessarytreatment after cutting without liability of becoming caked or tangledand may be delivered from the last machine in proper condition.

The arrangement of the gearing between the cylinders shown is preferred;but any desired manner of producing the requisite different surfacespeed of the fingers or of the cylinders may be employed, and it isdesirable, although not regarded as essential, that the cylinder 13,referred to as the main cylin der, be of larger diameter than theothers.

In order that the fibers may not cling to the teeth on thedoffer-cylinder and be carried around by it, any suitable device forremoving them may be employedsuch, for instance, as the curved wires 40,extending partially around the cylinder between the teeth or fingersthereon.

WVhat is claimed as the invention of the said OSCAR W. ALLISON is- 1. Inan apparatus for disentangling or combing and treating fibers, thecombination of a plurality of revoluble hollow cylinders provided withprojecting fingers thereon, those on adjacent cylinders extending pasteach other, fluid-supply pipes leading into and out of the cylinders andmeans for rotating the cylinders at different relative speeds.

2. In an apparatus for disentangling or combing and treating damp fiberssuch as cut tobacco, the combination of a plurality of revoluble hollowcylinders provided with projecting teeth or fingers thereon, those onadjacent cylinders extending past each other, fluid supply and dischargepipes connecting with opposite ends of the cylinders and gearing forrotating the several cylinders at diiferential surface speeds.

3. In an apparatus for disentangling or combing and treating damp fiberssuch as cut tobacco, the combination of a pair of hollow revolublefeed-cylinders having projecting teeth or fingers thereon extending pasteach other, gearing for operating said rollers at diiferent surfacespeeds, a main hollow cylinder having projecting teeth or fingersextending past those on the feed-cylinders, a hollow cylinder havingteeth or fingers extending past those on the main cylinder and on one ofthe feed-cylinders, gearing for operating the last-mentioned cylinder ata different surface speed from either of said two cylinders and fluidsupply and discharge passages leading to the interior of all of thecylinders.

4. In an apparatus for disentangling or combing and treating fibers suchas cut tobacco, the combination with a pair of revo luble hollowfeed-cylinders each having projecting teeth or fingers extending pastthose on the other, means for operating the rollers at different surfacespeeds in opposite directions, a hollow revoluble main cylinder havingteeth or fingers extending past those on the two feed-cylinders, gearingfor operating said main cylinder at a different surface speed fromeither of the feed-cylinders,-and a hollow revoluble doffing-cylinderhaving teeth or fingers extending between those on one feed-cylinder andon the main cylinder, means for operating said dofling-cylinder atgreater surface speed than either of the other two and fluid supply anddischarge passages leading to the interior of all the cylinders.

5. In an apparatus for disentangling or combing and treating fibers suchas out tobacco, a revoluble hollow cylinder having outwardly-projectingteeth or fingers thereon,

a similar cylinder provided with projecting teeth or fingers, meansforrevolving the two I 5 CAROLINE ALLISON WOLCOZPT, Execuir'z'm of theestate of Oscar W. Allison,

deceased.

Witnesses: A

O. G. WOLCOTT, FREDERICK F. CHURCH.

